Research for Schools and Colleges

This paper describes two federal programs that could facilitate the Navy's efforts to recruit pretrained people as well as benefit general recruiting efforts from community colleges: the School-to-Work Opportunities Act and the Tech Prep Act. It offers recommendations on how to apply these programs specifically to the Navy, in terms of the types of targeted fields of study and activities for active participation that are vital components of these federal programs. It also recommends forming partnerships to create tailor-made courses of study around training curricula that have significant civilian overlap, which could save significant training costs and enhance Navy's recruiting efforts at community colleges.

As the Navy has downsized its forces, funding for a variety of activities has dropped. The Navy's flagship schools, The United States Naval Academy, The Naval War College, The Naval Postgraduate School, and for purposes of this study, The Armed Forces Staff College, have not been immune to these reductions. In response, N81 asked CNA to take a bottom-up look at each the Navy's flagship schools. The main goals of the assessment were, first to evaluate the current quality of condition of the schools, and second, to help determine the level of funding needed over the Future Year Defense Plan (FYDP) to maintain Navy schools as 'top-tier' institutions. The study summarizes the findings and recommendations regarding funding and opportunities for efficiency improvements. One important finding focuses on the effectiveness of the current structure of the graduate education system. Although the flagship schools offer excellent graduate and professional military education, the Navy does not use its graduates in a manner consistent with these programs of study.

This paper examines the curriculum of the Naval War College, focusing on adapting the current three-course program to provide a more appropriate education for the officers looking to meet the nation's needs through the tumultuous decade ahead.

Navy A-school training provides the basic skills necessary for new recruits to become qualified in their ratings. Not all students successfully complete the A-school pipeline they start. This research memorandum examines the reasons for attrition and provides some preliminary evidence on the effectiveness of reclassifying those students.